Fluxeon Annie User manual

AnnieTM
Brass Annealing Induction Heater
Manual Version 1.5 08/15/17

WARNING · WARNING · WARNING
Do not use this heater around your reloading bench.
While Annie emits no spar s nor flames, it can heat
objects inserted into its wor coil hot enough to ignite
powder and primers.
Serious harm or death could result.
SET UP A SEPARATE AREA FOR ANNEALING BRASS
NEVER anneal a primed case!
While Annie is fast enough to leave the case head
cool, a piece of hot debris could fall off the mouth
and land in the primer hole,
detonating the primer.
ANNEAL ONLY DE-PRIMED CASES!
WARNING · WARNING · WARNING
Page 2 of 12

Safety Warning
•Do not get wet. Thi unit i not water re i tant. If the unit does get wet, unplug it as
quic ly as possible and allow to thoroughly dry before trying to use it again. Low heat (150F or
less) is recommended to aid drying.
•This equipment contains sensitive electronics. Do not use this instrument to drive nails, brea
roc s or otherwise subject it to excessive shoc or vibrations. Try not drop it any more than
necessary.
•Do not heat anything other than ammunition brass with this unit. No aerosol cans, air tan s, or
any container that is sealed. Yeah, it's fun to heat things until they blow up but please don't use
Annie for that purpose!
•Do not heat anything flammable or anything that contains flammable materials or substances.
Automobile gas tan s, for example.
•Do not use the radio frequency output for anything other than case annealing. No this isn't a
cute little ham radio transmitter!
•Do not remove the 3rd wire safety prong. The earth ground is vital to this unit's operation, and
YOUR SAFETY.
•Do not carry the unit by its cables.
•Do not open the case. No user-serviceable parts inside. Warranty will be voided if the case is
opened. Yes we will know....
•Do not tamper with the circuit brea er. It is not adjustable.
•This unit emits strong radio frequency (RF) energy. Please do not use it around other sensitive
electronic equipment. In the factory, that means don't plug it into the same power serving an
instrumentation, PLC or industrial PC cabinet.
•Annie's case may get quite hot during extended operation. The over-temperature protection
triggers at 70 deg C (158 deg F). This is quite hot to the touch and can cause mild burns. If
Annie must be operated for an extended period then we suggest setting up a fan to blow on
the case.
•If any of the cords become frayed or cut, please return the unit to the factory for replacement.
Page 3 of 12

Introduction
Than you for purchasing the Annie Brass Annealer! You will discover that induction heating brass and
steel cases to be a pleasant, fast and fun experience. Please read this manual in its entirety before
operating Annie for the first time. (It's not that long....)
Setting Up for the First Time
When you open the shipping container you will find a fully assembled Annie. The heating coil (wor
coil) has been disconnected and pac ed carefully for shipping.
The Annie is sold apart from the various coils, but they all connect to the front panel in the same way.
•To prepare Annie for operation, remove it from its pac ing material and attach the wor coil to
the front face terminals. Gently tighten the screws. Note: 'Firm' is enough—don't tighten as
if you need to ratchet it down.
•Re-tighten after your first 25 cartridges. The solder-dipped ends will soften a little with use. If
a good connection is compromised, the result will be a hot spot, and a melted connector.
•You might notice some brown ‘gun ’ inside the terminal housing. Don’t worry, and don’t clean it.
It’s conductive electrical grease and helps ma e a good connection with no hot spots.
•Attach the foot switch to the front panel jac and place it on the floor in a convenient location.
After you finish reading these instructions, you are ready to start annealing your brass.
The Front Panel
Here is a photo of the front panel. The features are as follows.
•Work coil connectors – where the heating coil connects. Only use Fluxeon-provided coils.
Any other type of coil will damage the Annie.
•3-digit LED display. Shows the time in tenths of a second that the timer is programmed to run.
•“Set” LED. Shows that the heater is in the “time set” mode. This mode is entered by pressing
and releasing the “Set” nob.
•“Heat” LED. Shows when the induction heater is on.
•“Set” knob. This is a multi-function control. If you press and release it one time, Annie enters
the “time set” mode. Turning the nob sets the desired time on the display. When the desired
time is set, press the nob again (“set” LED goes out) and the heater is ready to run.
If you press and hold the “Set” nob for 4 or more seconds, the time setting is reset to “0.0”.
Note: the Maximum time for the Annie is set to 20 seconds. Most cartridges are annealed in
under 3 seconds, 50BMGs in about 10 seconds.
•“Start” button. This switch turns the heating on and off and starts the timer count-down. If you
press the “Start” button while a heating cycle is underway, the cycle is paused.
•Foot Switch. (optional) is wired in parallel with the “Start” button, and so functions identically.
•Power Breaker. This is the power switch for Annie. We recommend that Annie be left in the
“off” position when the unit is not in use, but no harm will come if left on. It consumes less than
5W while idle. On larger cartridges, the brea er may buzz. It's designed to put up with a small
overload for a short time.
◦If Annie is overloaded, the brea er will trip. If it repeatedly trips then there might be
something wrong with Annie. Contact sup[email protected] for troubleshooting.
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Using Annie
Using the annealer is extremely simple.
•Switch on the brea er on the front panel. The heater will do an LED test and then recall the time
from the last session if one was present.
•If the time is not correct, press and release the “set” nob (“set” LED illuminates) and adjust the
time as necessary. Press the “set” nob again to exit the “set” mode.
◦Note: “20.0” seconds is a special setting (on some versions it's “999”). This allows for 'momentary' operation.
This is not used in reloading where timing is important, but the Annie does occasionally get some odd jobs that
need it.
****DOUBLE-CHECK TO MAKE CERTAIN THE CARTRIDGE IS NOT PRIMED****
•Insert a brass cartridge into the wor coil approximately as deep as you want it heated. Normally
that would be just the mouth of the case, especially for shouldered cases. For correct insertion
depth, paint a line of Tempilaq along the length of the case, and observe where the melting
happens first.
•Press the Start button to start the heat cycle. If you desire additional cycle speed, the Fluxeon
Universal Foot Switch will be worth considering.
•The heating is so fast that you can hold most types of cases by the head. Annealing pistol
cartridges will probably require gloves or a non-conductive holder.
•If you desire water quenching, drop the brass into a buc et of water. (However, this is not
metallurgically necessary to the annealing process.)
•Repeat! Note that the power output will increase after the first 10 or so cartridges. This is
because the internal transformer is warming up, which changes the output about 8%. so please
give Annie a dozen or so ‘practice shots’ before ‘firing for effect’. Just put the first ten anneals
bac into the line to be annealed again (once they have cooled).
•If you are heating a large number of cartridges, and doing so at deafening speed, the thermal
cut-out may engage. The Start button or foot switch will still initiate a countdown on the timer,
but no heat will be produced. You will see the HEAT LED turn blue/magenta when the fault is in
effect. You will also hear a tone from the Annie.
◦Go grab a cold one and let Annie cool off.
•For high duty-cycle operation, consider using the water-cooled coil.
Heating Times
Most shouldered cartridges up through .30 cal and straight walled pistol cases will anneal properly in 2-
4 seconds. Shouldered cartridges larger than .30 cal will require more time. A 50 BMG will require
about 10 seconds—for larger cartridges, allow more time in between heats. If you’re using the flux
concentrator output head, larger calibers should be slowly rotated to ensure evenness of heating. Just
90 degrees or a quarter turn during the length of the cycle. No rotation is needed for the water-cooled
helical coil, as it is self-centering from the magnetic field.
For best results, obtain a Tempilaq® temperature measuring liquid or crayon and vary the time until you
get exactly the temperature you desire. 750F Tempilaq will turn from a chal y appearance to
translucent, exactly at 750 degrees F. Just paint a lengthwise line on the cartridge, which will also help
with correct positioning. The tenth of a second resolution of the Annie timer is more than adequate for
precision annealing.
Page 5 of 12

•Coil Options
The Annie has several wor coil options:
•Water-Cooled Helical Coil. The Water-Cooled Coil essentially gives the Annie virtually
unlimited duty-cycle. The helical coil
has the fastest cycle time of the
three, and most even heat. The high
frequency field will actually self-
center the cartridge to magnetic
center.
Connect the end to the white terminal bloc ,
just li e the Litz coil.
You can position the water connections
however you li e—the copper is flexible.
You may have to re-tighten the
compression fittings, but try not to overdo
it. Over-tightening can also cause a lea .
The Water-Cooled Coil includes 25 feet of
1/4” plastic tubing. Cut to the length
desired, and insert the tube into the instant
tube fitting on the coil. There is nothing to do except push the tube in. to release, push in the release
ring, and then pull the tube out.
The water supply can be just about anything: tap water from a nearby faucet, pump-recirculated water,
or if you have a high shelf, a gravity feed system will wor . Only a dribble of flow is required, on the
order of 1 gallon per hour. If you prefer to use a pump, the best choice is a diaphragm, gear or vane
pump. You'll need about 5psi (or 3M of lift) to get the required flow.
Fluxeon now offers a pump/reservoir—
please chec the web store!
•Litz Wire Split Ferrite Flux
Concentrator. Now there's a
mouthful! Let's just call this the FC
Coil and ma e it easy on ourselves.
This coil is made of 1,750 strands of
individually insulated 40AWG magnet wires,
with a solid 12AWG core so that it eeps its
shape. It will get warm, and can be ruined
with too much usage so you'll have to go a
little more slowly with this one.
It is, however, air-cooled and requires no
water. It also features an open side, which some fol s prefer.
The Annie FC coil it comes with 4 ferrite halves, and hardware that bolts them together. The halves
are color-coded according to cut size on the gap end. Mix and match until you get the right gap. The
cartridge should be tight, but not touching the sides.
Page 6 of 12

The white ceramic on the ends is solely present for spacing and evening out the magnetic field. If one
comes off, you can reattach it with ordinary hardware store silicone.
For cartridges larger than 7.62mm, you'll want to rotate the cartridge 90 degrees as the timer counts
down. It's not 100% necessary, but it will give a more even anneal.
•Giraud Retrofit Cut Toroidal Coil.
This is a coil made specially for the Giraud automatic annealing machine. The toroid is the most
efficient of the open-sided coils, and since the cartridge is rotated by the machine, no spacers are
required. We feature water-cooled versions of the Giraud Coil, for those interested in very fast cycling.
If you plan to anneal large cases such as 50BMG, you’ll need the 3/4” gap version. Because the power
levels are highest with these larger cartridges, we do recommend that you buy the water-cooled
version of this coil.
Contact Giraud Tool Company for information on their adapter it. For those of you who already have
one, certain of the parts must be replaced with non-conductive materials so they don't induction-heat
themselves. Also included in the it is mounting hardware you'll need.
***TIMING ISSUE*** please note that there is a timing sequence that must be observed with the
Giraud system. The issue arises when the cycle time of the feeder is exceeded by that of the Annie
timer. With the timer still counting down, the slide returns and triggers another 'start' signal. but doing
this will cause the timer to stop. so the timer will show a frozen time setting until the slide returns to
start the next cycle. this cycle will only get a partial heating since it's starting from where it was
prematurely stopped.
If your cartridge needs a longer heat from the Annie, please slow down the Giraud feeder.
And just holler at us if you need help. That’s what we’re here for~
•The Fluxeon Universal Foot Switch
The Universal Foot Switch is compatible with the Annie. Use it to actuate the timer, same as pressing
the 'Start” button. It will give you an extra free hand to move your brass. Older versions of the foot
switch connect to the front panel DB-9 connector, but we made a change. There is now a 3.5mm jac
in the front panel as well, and the foot switch connector will now connect here.
This is because occasionally the DB-9 connector is needed for some other function, li e supplying
power to the recirculator pump.
•The Water Recirculator/ Reservoir
This is to supply water to the water-cooled helical coil. It’s a half-gallon glass jar, with a pump and
power cable that connects to the front panel DB-9 connector for power. A 4oz bottle of Anti-Corrosion
Fluid concentrate is included. You need only 1 ounce to treat the whole half gallon jar. This corrosion
inhibitor also enables higher heat capacity and will remove heat more efficiently by decreasing surface
tension and preventing oxide buildup.
You can use any available water, but ma e sure it is particulate-free. The coil ID is very small and
easily plugged up. For best results use filtered (preferably distilled) water. You will want to change the
water out once every year or so.
Page 7 of 12

The pump is not self-priming. Unprimed, it will sound li e a bag full of sic cats when turned on—turn it
off immediately if you hear that! Don’t suc on any of the tubes to prime it--just ma e sure it’s filled
almost all the way to the top, such that the pump cavity is submerged. When the pump is properly
primed, it is practically silent.
To prime the pump, simply prepare the coolant and screw the lid/pump on. Wait a minute or so, THEN
connect the plastic tubes. There may still be some air trapped in the pump cavity, which can be
eliminated by cycling power several times.
Don’t forget to attach the included suction tube onto the center hose barb, if it is not already on.
The Water Recirculator should be adequate for most applications. The water might get very warm, but
that’s OK. If you hear bubbling in the coil during a heat cycle, it’s just about time to ta e a brea . You
can get around this by putting a fan across the jar, by placing the jar in a bowl of ice cubes, or by
putting a radiator and fan in the loop. (we’re wor ing on a higher capacity system….)
The newest revision of the Annie features an internal pump power supply. So it can be powered by
plugging an included cable that connects the pump to the DB9 front panel connector. If you prefer, you
can use any 12VDC power supply with a 2.5mm connector. It needs to be 1A rated or better.
Page 8 of 12

Some Notes About the Flux Concentrator and Litz Wire
The Annie has about a 50% duty-cycle. What does this really mean? At 100% power, it can only be on
half the time. Since most cartridges will not draw full-power, and it ta es time to move cartridges
through, Annie is essentially a continuous-use machine. It features a thermal cut-out switch, but that
only triggers when the case exceeds 70C (be careful—that’s HOT!). And that happens only in extreme
circumstances.
The power supply is one factor, the coil is another. The FC Coil coil is made up of over 1,750
individually insulated strands of 40AWG magnet wire. This is called “Litz Wire”. Since electricity rides
mostly on the surface of a conductor, the goal should be to have a conductor with the highest surface
area possible. In a nutshell, this is the genius of Litz wire.
Coils are not just heated by heavy currents. The Annie coil can have well over 100 amps flowing at
pea power. But, induction heating heats anything conductive in the field--including the coil itself.
You'll notice that the portion of the coil closest to the ferrite gap will tend to get hotter first.
So it becomes necessary to monitor your usage of the Annie, not so much because of the power
supply, but because of the coil. If you notice any smo e at all from the coil, that means the wire varnish
is beginning to melt. Stop! Further use will damage the coil.
The current revision of the Annie includes an internal fan, which vents out the sides and the front,
directly behind the coil mount. Ma e sure this airflow is not hampered or bloc ed by anything, and that
it remains unclogged by 'dust bunnies'. If you cannot hear the fan, then please stop and contact us for
repair.
For heavier, worry-free usage, please consider the water-cooled helical coil. It connects just li e the
Litz coil, but also has two 1/4” instant-tube connections to a water source. Since the flow rates required
for cooling the coil are in the neighborhood of 1 gallon per hour, most users will see economy in just
hoo ing up to a water faucet and sending the exiting water down the drain (or into the flower bed, etc.).
Alternately, you may use a recirculating reservoir as complex as a refrigerated chiller, or something as
simple as an aquarium pump and a buc et of water.
Fluxeon offers a simple, low-cost water recirculator/ reservoir that is a drop-in solution for this. See our
web store for more details.
Page 9 of 12

Care and Cleaning
Annie requires very little maintenance. There are no user-serviceable parts inside Annie. The only
care required is to ma e sure the fins are clear and unobstructed. If there is a dust built-up, please
vacuum the vents. Do not use compressed air as that only blows the dirt inside Annie.
Also important: leave the Annie plugged in while doing this.
The outlet’s ground will help dissipate any harmful static electricity buildup.
If Annie gets wet, as long as the power is off, it will not be harmed. Simply let it dry before using. Set it
in the window sill or some other warm place. If you have any doubt at all that it's dry, please return it to
us for service.
If Annie is powered up when it gets wet, immediately remove the power. If the spillage is beer, cola or
anything else, then you should return Annie to the factory for a proper cleaning and testing. Get an
RMA number from the web store, or email [email protected].
(of course, you should be saving that adult beverage until AFTER annealing!)
Specifications
Rated input power 1200W 1200W
Rated input Current 10A 5A
Operating voltage 120 VAC +10% 230V +20%
Operating Frequency 40-50 Hz, depending on load 40-50 Hz, depending on load
Ambient operating
temperature
50 – 110 deg F
Storage Temperature -10 – 160 deg F
Duty cycle Approximately 50%
Maximum operating
temperature
70 deg C.
Page 10 of 12

Appendix A
Auxiliary Connector
The Annie features an auxiliary connector on the front panel. This connector is designed to permit the
remote control of Annie. The pinouts are as follows:
Pin Number Function
15V 5ms End-of-Cycle pulse with pin 4
2 No Connection
3 No Connection
4* Isolated Ground
512V Pump +pos 450mA MAX
6 No Connection
7 No Connection
8* External Switch in **
912V Pump –neg 450mA MAX
* Pins 4 and 8 turn on the Annie when shorted (switched). It is wired in parallel with the Start button on
the front panel.
** Pins 4 and 8 are for connection to an external switch such as The Fluxeon Universal Foot Switch, or
any other physical switch. Note, that this cannot be switched by a triac or solid-state relay. It must be a
physical contact or mechanical relay. If you have an SSR output on your controller, just have it turn on
a small-signal relay, and connect the Annie to that.
Technical Support
The Fluxeon crew is dedicated to supporting you the customer. The best way to get technical support is to
email [email protected]. For non-technical support questions, email [email protected]. We try to respond
to requests within the hour during business hours and within a day regardless.
For telephone support, call us at 858-346-1900. This call goes directly into voice mail that in turn pages the
person doing support at that moment. Someone will get bac to you as quic ly as possible.
We are a small company and telephone support ta es up a lot of time so if your problem isn't a genuine
emergency, plea e u e the email upport. Even when you telephone us, the support tic et is going to end up
bac in email so that you can send us photos and such, so you might as well start with email in the first place.
Returns
If you need to return your unit for service (in warranty or out) then you must contact us for an RMA number.
Email is the best method of contact. Write the RMA number on the outside of the pac age in large numbers so
that it is easily visible. The RMA number lets us trac your problems and associate them with the machine when
it arrives. Pac ages without RMA numbers may be returned to sender. Please include a sheet of paper with
your contact information inside the box, just in case.
Limited Warranty
The Annie is covered by our limited lifetime warranty. Please visit http://fluxeon.com/warranty.html for all the
warranty details.
Page 11 of 12

Notes
Page 12 of 12